For some housewives, pancakes and pancakes are practically the same, although the difference is obvious – firstly, pancakes are several times smaller than pancakes and, secondly, pancakes are more magnificent than pancakes. And in the United States, these two concepts are not distinguished at all – since both of them are denoted by the same word pancake, but we will talk about them later. For me, pancakes are a different story. Even as a child, after reading Fazil Iskander’s story “Flatcakes of the thirty-seventh year”, I got the impression that pancakes are bad. Over time, of course, my opinion has changed, but still re-reading this story, my heart shrinks like a stone … But let’s get back to our pancakes. Pancakes are a national traditional Russian pastry (although pancakes are made in different countries, and they are included in the continental breakfast in many hotels in the world!), Which is prepared in the form of small thick pancakes from flour, cereals, vegetables with yeast or soda, more often nowadays, however, baking powder is used, and they are not only baked, but also fried on both sides in a pan or deep-fried. In the old days, the dough was poured in such a way that at least 4-6 fritters connected together would fit in one pan. Such pancakes were not turned over, but baked until golden brown and served. Fritters can be cooked, like pancakes, with baking. They are good for breakfast or lunch with sugar, jam or honey. In order to cook pancakes, you need to know the following simple secrets: the dough for pancakes should be a little infused, but it is not recommended to keep it for a long time. It is better to knead it an hour or two before baking – pancakes can be baked from different types of flour: corn, buckwheat or whole wheat flour – it is more convenient to pour the dough into the pan with a ladle. It is best to bake pancakes in a cast-iron pan – a pancake maker, but any pan with a thick bottom is suitable – when preparing pancakes and pancakes, you should remember some features. Flour must be sifted at the time of preparation of the dough directly into the pan pancake pan, bowl or pot), in which the dough is prepared – if you pour a few tablespoons of oil into the dough for pancakes, pancakes and mix thoroughly, the pan does not need to be lubricated every time, but only under the first pancake. Oil should be poured into the dough after the dough is half kneaded. You can not pour oil into the dough at the same time as whipped proteins, as the foam will immediately settle and the pancakes will not be loose and lacy, as they could be. For lubrication frying pans use the following techniques: 1) pour 1-2 tablespoons of vegetable oil on a saucer. Cut a circle from a raw potato, chop it on a fork, dip it in vegetable oil, grease the pan with a potato circle, the pancake will never stick to the pan; 2) chop a piece of bacon on a fork and grease the pan with it. If the dough is prepared with yeast, then the whipped proteins should be introduced after it has completely risen, and the dough should be allowed to rise again. egg whites should be whipped in a spotlessly clean bowl. There should not even be traces of yolk in the proteins; pancakes should be poured into the pan with a deep spoon or a small ladle; pancakes should be turned over with a wide spatula. So, for the basic recipe for making pancake dough, we need: 2 cups flour, 1 bag of flour improver, 4 tbsp. l. сахара, 0, 5 ч. l. разрыхлителя, 1 ч. l. lemon juice, 1.5-2 cups of milk, 2 eggs, 60 g butter Sift flour with baking powder and improver into a bowl. Pour sugar into it. Pour lemon juice into milk, leave for 5 minutes to get whey. Make a well in the dry ingredients mixture and pour in the eggs, 1 cup milk and melted butter. Knead a homogeneous dough. If it is too thick, add the remaining milk. Heat up a frying pan, grease it with melted butter. Bake the pancakes 2cm apart over moderate heat for 1 minute, until the underside is browned. Turn the pancakes over and bake on the other side until done. Serve warm, putting butter cut into pieces on top. The so-called “American” pancakes are very popular with our housewives. Almost every American movie always shows a scene where the whole family gathers for breakfast at a large table and delicious pancakes are served at the table, always with an essential attribute – maple syrup or peanut butter. American pancakes Ingredients: 2 cups flour a pinch of salt 2 eggs 2.5 cups milk vegetable oil 4 tbsp. l. сода 1 ч. l. lemon juice 2-3 tbsp. l. sugar 4 tbsp. l. Cooking method: To prepare milk, mix it with lemon juice and let stand for a while. In our conditions, milk with lemon can easily be replaced with kefir or yogurt. In a deep bowl, mix milk or kefir, soda, salt, sugar, eggs. Add the sifted flour, mix well again so that there are no lumps. Влить растительное масло ( 3 ст. l.), перемешать. Heat the oil in a cast iron skillet and fry the pancakes on both sides over medium heat. Serve with maple syrup or peanut butter. And I also want to tell you about one type of pancakes, which have a funny name – stupid. They differ from other types of fritters in that they are kneaded only with milk. Nothing else, like in other pancakes, is added to them – no eggs, no butter, no water. Dilute yeast (and even better leaven from dough!) In warm milk, beat, then gradually add flour to this liquid, in small portions, rubbing it so that there are no lumps, and beat all the time. When the consistency of the dough resembles thick sour cream and will wrap up on a spoon when whipping, beat it well and leave it in a saucepan with a lid closed. After 15-20 minutes, you should see if the dough has risen and do not let it rise. if the dough has risen noticeably, then you should take it without disturbing or pressing, carefully from the edges with a spoon and fry in a pan.